Three years after his maiden Dakar success, Toby Price (Red Bull KTM Factory Team/ Michelin) finished on top again to earn Michelin’s 36th victory on the cross-country classic, as well as KTM’s 18th on the trot in association with the French tyre firm. The Australian finished clear of his team-mate and last year’s victor Matthias Walkner, while Sam Sunderland (Red Bull KTM Factory Team/Michelin) made it an all-KTM/Michelin top three.

After winning last season’s visit to Marrakech, Mahindra Racing finished on top again this time around thanks to Jérôme d’Ambrosio who was joined on the podium by Envision Virgin Racing’s Robin Frijns and Sam Bird. Antonio Felix da Costa tangled late in the race with his BMW I Andretti Motorsport team-mate while leading, and defending champion Jean-Eric Vergne (Techeetah) span at the race’s first turn.

FIA WEC - Toyota and Michelin win in rainy Shanghai

FIA WRC - Sixth WRC title for Ogier and Toyota’s fourth, all with Michelin

The N°7 Toyota TS050 Hybrid/Michelin of Conway/Kobayashi/Lopez and the N°8 sister car of Buemi/Alonso/Nakajima collected another one-two finish for the Japanese make in the FIA WEC as torrential rain greeted teams to Shanghai, China. Michelin scored its 50th LM GTE Pro class victory in the championship with the N°95 Aston Martin (Sorensen/Thiim).

Rebellion/Michelin harvests Silverstone success

The disqualification of both Michelin-equipped Toyota TS050 Hybrids after the finish of the 2018 6 Hours of Silverstone handed victory to the N°3 Rebellion/Michelin of Beche/Laurent/Menezes. Rebellion’s N°1 car (Jani/Lotterer) was second, while Ferrari/Michelin took the LM GTE Pro prize with the N°51 488 GTE of Pier Guidi/Calado.

In addition to its usual cocktail of unsettled weather and the demands made of tyres through the British venue’s notoriously fast corners, Silverstone provided tyre manufacturers with an additional challenge at this year’s FIA WEC clash in the form of an entirely resurfaced track – offering good grip – for Round 3 of the 2018/2019 championship.

The race was unsurprisingly dominated by the two Toyota Gazoo Racing-run TS050 Hybrids and the N°7 and N°8 prototypes traded the lead several times either out on the track or in the pitlane as a function of their respective strategies. The pole-winning N°8 machine of Fernando Alonso, Sébastien Buemi and Kazuki Nakajima was first past the chequered flag but both cars were later disqualified for a skid block deflection infringement after inspection at post-race scrutineering.

As a result, the win was attributed to the N°3 Rebellion/Michelin of Mathias Beche, Thomas Laurent and Gustavo Menezes who survived a tangle at the start. Second was the team’s N°1 sister car (Jani/Lotterer) which underwent a rebuild prior to the race after Bruno Senna’s big shunt during practice. The Michelin-equipped N°17 SMP Racing prototype of Sarrazin/Orudzehv was third.

In the LM GTE Pro class, all the carmakers involved in the series (all on Michelin rubber) challenged for victory. The N°66 Ford started from pole but lost any chance of victory after an extended pit stop for a door change. The N°85 Aston Martin then led its home race at the end of the first hour but the N°51 Ferrari was in front by the race’s halfway point, chased by the N°92 Porsche. The 488 GTE/Michelin of Alessandro Pier Guidi and James Calado went on to take the top prize, chased over the line by the N°91 Porsche/Michelin (Lietz/Bruni), N°67 Ford/Michelin (Priaulx/Tincknell) and N°92 Porsche/Michelin (Christensen/Estre).

The LM GTE Am battle was won by Dempsey-Proton Racing’s N°77 Porsche/Michelin, ahead of the N°90 Aston Martin/Michelin, while the N°56 Project 1 Porsche/Michelin pinched third spot from the N°98 Aston Martin on the final lap.

Jackie Chan Racing came first and second in LM P2 with its N°38 (Tung/Aubry/Richelmi) and N°37 (Jaafar/Tan/Jeffri) Gibson-powered Orecas.

There was encouragement, too, for Michelin – which is making its comeback in the category – since the N°31 Dragonspeed and N°29 Nederland Racing prototypes ended up in the top five.

After qualifying on pole for the 4 Hours of Silverstone (European Le Mans Series) and securing second and third places in Saturday afternoon’s race, Michelin tyres helped two LM P2 prototypes (N°31 Dragonspeed and N°29 Nederland Racing cars) finish in the class’s top five in Sunday’s six-hour bill-topper.

FIA WEC action will now resume in October with Round 4 at Mount Fuji, Japan.

Round 1 of the 2018/2019 Formula E Championship in Diriyah, Saudi Arabia, was won by Antonio Felix da Costa. The Portuguese BMW i Andretti Motorsport driver was joined on the podium by Jean-Eric Vergne (DS Techeetah/Michelin) and Jérôme d’Ambrosio (Mahindra Racing/Michelin).

A number of key decisions were taken at the FIA World Council meeting that was held in Saint Petersburg, Russia, on December 5. Many of them referred to some of the global championships in which Michelin is active, namely the WEC, WRC and Formula E.

After claiming the season’s opener in Qatar, Andrea Dovizioso concluded the 2018 MotoGPTM World Championship with victory in Valencia. The Italian was unfazed when the race was red flagged due to heavy rain and he went on to finish clear of Alex Rins (Team SUZUKI ECSTAR/Michelin) and Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing/Michelin).